HONORING ‘A CONTRACT’

Comics pioneer Will Eisner’s 1978 book, A Contract with God, has been erroneously called “the first graphic novel.” It’s not; it’s not a novel, for one thing, but a collection of short stories set in the same Bronx tenement. Semantics aside, it remains an ambitious, groundbreaking work. Eisner’s vivid characters wail, sing, connive, and fall in love—in the grip of emotions larger than life, yet rooted in it. Now the Scott Eder Gallery is exhibiting original pages, sketches, and drawings from the book for the first time. Brooklyn Brewery provides the drinks for tonight’s opening reception.
Fri., June 14, 6 p.m.; Tuesdays-Saturdays, 11 a.m. Starts: June 14. Continues through Aug. 15, 2013